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M.C.
Gang is an American 4-D computer animated coming of age dark fantasy serialized television series created by Steve Marmel for Kart Tunes. It was produced by Diamond Champion in association with Rising Stars and distributed by Warner Bros. Set at New York City in the 2000s and 2010s decades, the series follows the adventures of McCrillis Nsiah, an adolescent mixed martial artist secret crime fighter who photographs and videographs law enforcement and gangs to expose their tyranny. McCrillis' attempts usually succeed but also leave him in various, often dangerous, predicaments as a result. Production began in 2064 and concluded in 2072. Originally planned as a theatrical 75 minute-long film, it was changed into a serialized television series, as Marmel wanted to place larger emphasis on the characters rather than the plot. He cited several teenage heroine action-orientated television series back in the 2000s and 2010s decades as his sources of inspiration for his work on this series. Its 44 minute-long pilot episode aired on November 28, 2070 and the first episode aired as the series' official premiere on March 6, 2071 and finished on January 4, 2075. It totaled 52 episodes across four seasons. Gang experience immense domestic and international popularity. Overview See also: List of Gang characters Gang is set in an alternate reality within the 2000s and 2010s decade, where several religious myths and perils coexist with humanity. It mainly follows McCrillis Nsiah, a black African-American teenage boy who lives in New York City at the neighborhood Crown Heights of the borough Brooklyn with his family, whom he rarely communicates and socializes with because of their differences in personality and overall outlook on life. During his early childhood, McCrillis joined a gym and began training in boxing and mixed martial arts; his older sister Joyce got married and moved away with her new family; his older brother Evans left for unknown reasons and never called back since; his younger brother Jemorie was killed by police at eight years old. McCrillis soon afterward became a member of the government's Youth Exploration Program as a secret crime fighter, working under his coach Brain Alleyene, a District Attorney investigator and computer genius. He also began publicly photographing and videographing gangs and law enforcement to expose their tyranny. However, problems always ensue, and McCrillis' attempts usually leave him being targeted or incarcerated. McCrillis attends Transit Technology High School in the neighborhood of East New York, also in Brooklyn, but his classmates verbally abuse him to the point he began skipping school on a regular basis. This forces McCrillis into detention or summer school as a make up for his absences and further catch up to graduate on time. The series also secondarily focuses on several other of McCrillis' closest friends and allies: Jonathan Castillo, a lightskin Dominican-American whom McCrillis has an amenable brotherly affection for, becomes caught up with the Trinitario gang and is unable to defect from them after he was jumped back in for the third time in a row against his own will or otherwise they'll kill him; MaKayla Jefferson, who serves as a younger sister figure to McCrillis, is best friends and roommates with color-blinded lesbian tomboy Cheyenne Williams and maternal figure Jaden Duran - the three female teenage trio are collectively known as G.A.L. Squad, have a full-time job at Old Navy, and have an amenable sisterly affection for one another; Devon Delacruz, whose attendance and grades at school are poor as McCrillis, is a talented yet cocky rapper and gangster wannabe who is best friends with Haze Geetooah and bullies Vaughn Hays; Nadage Charles, Alleyenne‘s closet subordinate whom the G.A.L. Squad looks up to as their role model and guidance. Development Production and casting Gang was created and executively produced by Steve Marmel, who also acted as showrunner and head writer, at Diamond Champion in association with Rising Stars; its 4-D animation art style and design is well known for being virtually identical to that of real life. The series was conceived in early 2063, entered full production the following year and finished in 2072. It was originally planned to be a 75 minute-long theatrical film; however, as process went on, it was expanded into a full-length serialized television series. Marmel stated he wanted to lament more on the characters and their motives, rather than just have them one-time as plot devices. Approximately up to 100 people worked together animating and producing each episode of Gang. The crew at Rising Stars did the written scripts, graphic design and movement, and dialogue; the episodes were then finalized by the crew at Diamond Champion, who reviewed them, did the editing, and added music, before being sent to Kart Tunes for approval or scrapped after disapproval by the network. While the series was expensive and time-consuming to produce and animate, the staff planned on finishing it up to "as long as they can", but they had overspent the budget on the series, and had to cancel their intention and shorten it down to 52 episodes. - Conception and themes Gang was heavily inspired by several teenage heroine action-orientated series back in the 2000s and 2010s decade, more specifically Kim Possible and Danny Phantom, the latter of which Marmel used to work on. Both series each feature a high school student heroine protagonist laying down the law while coping with everyday issues commonly associated with adolescence. Gang was also heavily inspired by a 1973 television movie titled The Marcus-Nelson Murders, and it was the pilot episode for the television series Kojak. It was set in New York City and that episode depicted a young, intellectually underdeveloped black male being abused and framed for crimes by members of the New York City Police Department. The series explored topics rarely touched in many television shows that feature teenagers in middle school and high school; it deals with youth, peer pressure, abuse, corruption, war, loss, racism, discrimination, stereotyping, homelessness, and LGBT. Gang also explored the philosophical questions surrounding the law and policy; this results in its characters and plot structure being written with many layers of depth and complexity, and thus, their motives frequently being strayed into grey territory. All of these subject explorations and narrative writing give the series a wide variety in its atmosphere, a consistent theme, and a relatable connection to the audience. - Broadcast Episodes International Reception and merchandising Ratings Gang averaged 2 to 3 million viewers each episode, totaling 26 to 39 million viewers each season; it also averaged 1.6 million viewers a day, totaling 48 million viewers a month; making Gang ''the only original series in Kart Tunes' history to achieve the most ratings. 33% of the series' viewership were children aged 6 through 12 while the rest were a combination of teenagers and adults, making ''Gang the only original series in Kart Tunes' history to appeal to all age groups. Critical reception Gang received generally positive reviews from critics. Kart Tunes president Jacob Phillips' most favorite show was Gang. Awards and accolades See also